“Quack.” Two legs towered over Amanda’s white feathery form. They looked majestic, dangerous, but Amanda did not see that the arms of the figure above was holding the door open, so she and her small children could wiggle into the building. Through the glass Amanda could see the place she wanted to go. The wide world. The place where her children would grow up.

Amanda took a few more steps into the room. Her feet felt weird on the carpet. Her children were a little bit more excited about the feeling. They were jumping up and down with the feeling off the small hairs under their feet.

“Quieck, Quieck,” heard Amanda of her small duckling children. They were too excited. Amanda was running around on her two orange feet, trying to keep them together. However, Katie, her youngest girl, was jumping up and down and, one way or another, she managed to get onto the little piano stool.

Amanda ran towards her little child and ushered her down. “Come, come sweetie. It is not safe here. There is more to see in the outside world.” Katie wouldn’t listen, but ran towards the other side of the room, not knowing that the stool would soon end and she would meet the air. If she was a bit older she might have been able to fly a bit. But she is not old enough yet. Luckily the carpet was soft and Amanda managed to get her little girl up and running again.

When Amanda turned around she saw two little humans looking at her with curious faces. Another was hiding behind the larger one. “Quack!” Amanda spoke and followed her children towards the end of the room. Of course Berry found the little food trough of the cat standing in the corner of the room. “No, no, Berry. You wouldn’t like that.” Amanda touched the little duckling with her orange beak and nudged him towards another door, that was standing open.

Amanda could already feel the light and warmth of the world outside. Amanda felt the excitement but also the anxiety. Because outside it would be a lot more difficult to keep her little ducklings in check. In the park they had been safe. They were not able to fly away. But outside they could run wherever they wanted to go.

But while Amanda tried to get her children towards the corridor and towards the front door she needed to stay focused and confident. Otto, another boy of hers, got stuck in an umbrella holder. Amanda pushed the umbrella holder over. “Bang,” and Otto got out with a hard smack. Amanda had known what to expect, but her children were terrified of the sound, which, luckily, made them a bit more compliant. “Quieck, quieck.” “Good, children of mine. Let’s go and find us a new place to live.” And Amanda went through the door out of the house. With the sun shining bright Amanda wiggled to the horizon with five little ducklings right behind her.